How do I love thee, let me count the ways
by Crushed Seraphim
Summary: The title is very ironic- the stories have no relation to Shakespeare. A Collection of One-Shots- Delena & Klaroline with a few other secondary characters.
1. Just the way you are

Jenna's death still felt surreal. As I placed the red rose on her grave, it suddenly became real. With every tear rolling down my cheeks, I lost a significant part of me. They captured my life source in their depths and I willingly surrendered, knowing nothing was going to be the same.

...

He became weaker and weaker, coughing up the very substance that kept him alive but that was now poisoned. Watching him waste away was breaking my heart. I felt utterly powerless, having no way to save his life. With every cough, a wall broke down, more of his humanity shining through. His regret and sadness regarding the fact that I never met him while he was still human clawed at my heart and all I felt was pure agony. And then a thought illuminated my darkness. 'If he dies, could you let him go without ever showing him you care about him?' My conscience asked. The answer to this question was a clear 'No.' So I did the only thing I could and kissed him. The next words came from the heart, "I like you now. Just the way you are."


	2. Give me a chance, you won't regret it

There were several loud knocks on my front door. I was laying on the couch and decided not to answer. The book was too good to stop—plus, I knew who it was. _Let him suffer a little. Oh wait! He's incapable of feeling anything! _I thought, bitterly. After a small pause, the person became even more insistent, the knocking picking up tempo—so impatient...

Pissed off, I threw the book on the nearby coffee table and walked to the door, pulling it open and just stood there, without even acknowledging his presence.

"Why aren't you answering your phone? I called you 6 times!" I could see he was fuming, which would have made me smirk. Today it had the opposite effect—it just pissed me off even more.

Calmly, I answered, "6 missed calls? Hmm...My phone must be dead..."

He fumed, looking disgraced. "So you couldn't even _charge _it?"

"I have better things to do. In fact, before you interrupted my day, I was reading a very captivating book. Besides, what's it to you? Does it even matter whether I answer or not? I thought you'd be too busy to remember me, what with all the fooling around going on with _Rebeckah._ After all, I should just give up on you, right? You can't be _saved_- you don't _want _to be saved!"

For a quick second, I saw anger flash in his cerulean eyes before I found myself pressed against the wall on the opposite side of the room. I was _almost_ afraid. Almost, but not quite—I knew he would never hurt me.

"You're jealous!"

"I am not! Let me go." I hissed in discomfort.

"Not before you admit it."

This time, I didn't bother replying to his comment—I'd rather save my breath. "I said, _let go_ of me, Damon! _Now_!"

"You heard what I said. Your answer in return for your freedom. Spit it out, now...Come on." He smirked. "In case you need me to remind you, I have all the time in the world."

I huffed. "I'm not jealous. There's really nothing to admit." I stated and waited but nothing happened. "Let go." I said for the umpteenth time.

He raised an eyebrow in challenge. He wasn't buying it. "Look at me." He said, his voice cocooning me in smooth velvet. In protest, I kept my gaze on my feet. "Elena, look at me." He repeated, his tone a little more demanding.

"No."

"Fine."

I froze. _Wait, it couldn't be that easy. It's never that easy with him. _My train of thought came to a sudden halt as I felt his lips on mine, kissing me. The kiss was urgent yet there was a softness to the touch—almost a caress. I resisted it and attempted to push him off before my senses overpowered my conscience. My hands snaked into his raven hair as our tongues fought for dominance.

"Tell me you don't feel anything. Tell me you're indifferent. I dare you." I made eye contact and saw his smirk.

"You know how I feel about you." I said, feeling like a petulant child.

"And how's that?"

"I care about you."

"You care about me." He repeated and smirked. "Really?"

"Yes. God, you're so infuriating!" I said, slapping his chest.

"Anything else that's new?" The smirk and eye-thing taunted me. "Come on, Elena! It can be so easy...admit you're jealous and I promise to let you go."

"Why does everything have to be about you?" I felt like stomping my feet. Christ! This man brought out the worst in me.

"Because, Elena, I want for once, to be the centre of someone's universe. Don't you think I deserve that just once? Besides, considering my world revolves around you, it's only fair the feeling is reciprocated. I have said this before and I will say it again. _I love you._ Even though sometimes you drive me insane with your reckless selfless actions, you're my only weakness. You're the only person I allow myself to be vulnerable around ever since the Katherine fiasco. With each wall you break through, it gets harder to rebuild it and often, I find myself not wanting to. I love you, and if I have to repeat it for the rest of eternity until you finally realize you feel the same, then so be it. If there's one thing I will not run out of, it is time."

"That's just it, though. For me, if I admit there's something there, there would be no turning back. You managed to get under my skin and I can't shake you no matter how hard I try." My whole being was at war with itself until the storm calmed and I was left defenceless. "_I love you, too._" I admitted to myself and to him for the first time. "I do, but I'm afraid of where this is going. Being with you would be a complete change of lifestyle; it would take a lot of adjusting but it could also be the best thing that's ever happened to me. Right now, though, I'm still wondering if it's worth it."

"I don't want a repeat performance of what happened in 1864. You need to make a decision and let me know." I could see the vulnerability in his eyes which tugged at my heart and I felt a sudden need to protect him. I wanted to give us a chance. I would always love Stefan but how could I be with him knowing my feelings for his brother could overpower those for him?

"I love you, and because I love you, I will give us a chance. We'll handle everything one step at a time." I smiled and kissed him softly.

His expression melted into the most genuine smile I've ever seen. Pure, innocent love was radiating off him as he beamed back.

"I love you and I promise you this—you won't regret this decision." he swore.

Flipping a new page, I closed the door, locking away the past and focussing on the future. I knew Stefan wanted me to work out what I was feeling because he understood, just like I now did, that pain was inevitable for everyone involved in our twisted relationship. Yes, it was inevitable but only I could decide the severity of the hurt. It was better this way. I knew this because I could sense a change in the near future—whether it was positive or negative is yet to be revealed.


	3. The man behind the monster

He was sitting by the fireplace, her words running through his head. He never let anyone in because he was afraid he was going to get hurt. _Nobody cared about him._ His family didn't understand why he carried them around for so long. Dead...In coffins...It seemed like the perfect plot to a horror movie. _What kind of person did that, much less a family member?_

He stared at the flames. She was the only one that ever saw through his facade. Ever since he saved her, he couldn't get her out of his mind. He noticed that she was trying to see other side of him, the one that he _never let show_. The only time he ever let himself feel was when he was with Tatia, and he got his heart broken. That was a lesson to be learned—one to never be repeated. He'd never let his walls down around a girl—not even around his family. His own _dad _betrayed him. He hunted him and tried to kill him.

He remembered the night he saved her. He went over there to find her laying on her bed. _Helpless_. The light, in her, was dimming away. That flame that always burned bright in her eyes was flickering, about to burn out. She looked like a little girl—so innocent. It was then, when confronted with that sight, that he let himself feel. After thousands of years and countless promises to himself, he let himself feel.

He wanted to help her...He felt himself _needing_ to help her. She was the first person who raised a doubt within him—that made him think maybe, just maybe, it would be worth to change. His first urge was to bury this urge deep within him and extinguish the hope that flowed through him, warming his frozen heart.

Ever since that night, he kept sending her extravagant gifts, filling his sketchbook with drawings of her—imagining her in all these places he wanted to take her. Paris, Rome, Tokyo—he wanted to show her the world and shower her with gifts.

In the same moment, in a different house, a girl sat on her window seat. She was admiring the night—a time of day she should have been most acquainted with considering what she was. While staring up at the moon, her thoughts flew to him—the man with the beautiful blue eyes and blond, curly hair. She thought about all the things she kept finding this week—on her doorstep, on her bed, in her room...She thought about how she kept rejecting everything to do with him. Why? Because she was torn between wanting to give him a chance—to be the one he could trust and would seek when in doubt, and on the other hand, rejecting him for fear of being hurt. Everyone kept yelling at her that he was the bad guy. The big bad wolf! She let out something between a scoff and a laugh. She wouldn't be Red Riding Hood, a girl who would trust the wolf blindly. No, she was Caroline Forbes. She knew what she wanted and she would always protect her heart from the people who would break it and who didn't deserve to love or be loved by her.

She was scared. She lost a lot of people during her eighteen years. Her love life was complicated. No relationship of hers had ever lasted too long. She found herself repeatedly questioning why people even cared about her. She was shallow, insecure, neurotic, and a control-freak...among many other things. The problem was that all these qualities magnified when she became a vampire.

...

She walked into the bar and saw him sitting there, looking over at the crowd like a king on his throne...like he was god's gift to women. He looked like he owned the place. She marched straight past him before having heard her name.

"Caroline!"

"Oh, it's you." she said.

He took her in, while Kol stared at her amused. "Why don't you join us for a drink?"

She scoffed and laughed with no humour. "I'd rather die of thirst, but thanks." She said, holding back an urge to flip her hair, and walked away.

"Isn't she stunning?" he said, turning to his brother.

"Well, she certainly looks good walking away from you!" his brother laughed. Klaus only smirked and said, "I'll take that as a challenge."

Kol shook his head, smirking. Niklaus never backed down.

Klaus chased after Caroline, and almost got hit by a car trying to catch up to her as she exited the bar.

"Caroline."

"What? Don't you get it? Take a hint!" she sighed. "Leave me alone."

"I can't."

"Why? Why can't you leave me alone for once."

"I fancy you."

"Really? You fancy me." She shook her head. _That's just what I need right now_ she thought. Looking up and into his eyes, she asked, "Why?"

"Why what?" he raised an eyebrow. "Why am I attracted to you?" He walked towards a nearby bench and sat down, patting the open seat next to him invitingly. "Because you see the real me..." He faced me after I finally sat down, and resumed his previous train of thought. "Nobody has ever tried to see beneath the surface—beneath what I want them to see. They only see the bad boy act—well, everyone but one other person. Tatia. And then she got taken away from me. Well," he paused and his face smoothed into his usual mask, complete with the smirk. "That's another story for another time. As I was saying, you make me feel. I find myself wanting to change. That's never happened. I'm the guy who everyone fears. The indestructible one who can kill someone with the snap of their wrist. I don't argue when someone pisses me off. What I do is snap and break their neck. It's easier that way without feelings making everything more complicated than it needs to be. This way, I shut it all out: the hurt, the guilt...the sense of alienation and aloneness...The need to feel loved. My mom was one of the only ones who cared for me until I killed her. Sure, Elijah and Rebeckah were by my side throughout time but I always hurt them—locked them in coffins, only to revive them whenever I felt it was safe enough."

He placed his forearms on his knees and looked at his hands, glancing at me every so often. "What kind of person am I, Caroline? Who would do this to their brothers or sisters...? And yet, they stay with me...Family above all." He said, bitterly. "What they don't know though is that I still care. I love them, as twisted as that sounds. Even when we bicker and pretend to hate each other, we still have each other's backs. I've realized that they are the only ones I can count on—Rebeckah, Kol and sometimes, Elijah. Finn always despised us for what we are and continually had a death wish. Like I said, I would die for them if it ensured they are safe. I did all this to protect them. Having them out of the way ensured Mikael wouldn't hurt them. They shouldn't have been fighting my war."

A long pause followed. Caroline was fighting an inner battle with herself until she decided a small gesture was enough to make a difference and wouldn't do much damage. She placed her hand on his tense shoulder, rubbing it soothingly feeling the muscles contract and finally, relax.

"You need to understand that you can't buy people off. You need to let people in if you want to build something that lasts. A relationship is built on trust—not lies, not betrayal...but love and trust. You can't get trust if you don't give it." She pulled her hand away and got up. "I'm sorry, but I really should be going." She straightened her jacket out and smiled down at him one last time.

"Goodnight, Klaus."

A much lighter greeting met her ear. "Goodnight, Caroline. Sweet dreams."

After shaking her head at his smirk and wink, she turned her back on the broken man still sitting on the bench and head for her car.

There was still hope—there was a man still fighting the monster within him which meant Klaus could be saved. And she may just be the only person able to help him.


End file.
